The Relative Merits of a Malfoy
by LionLace
Summary: Hermione oversleeps after a long night of studying, and forgets that the new potions master arrives today. Likely a short, rather plot-less, lemon-fest. M for later chapters. Rated M for good reason!
1. Chapter 1

Hello all. So, some background.

This story takes place during Hermione's seventh year, after the war. This is very much an EWE, though apart from that I am trying to be as canon as possible, but, with a Lumione, that's a bit of a wash. Though I believe that, after the war, Lucius was greatly changed, as was Hermione, and they ar alike in enough ways to at least get on. Anyway, Hermione and Ron did not begin dating after the war, she needed space to sort through what had happened, what she'd been through, and he needed just the opposite. They remain friends, but he and Harry are both rather busy. Off auror-ing and whatnot. Review if the mood strikes you!

xx LionLace

Oh and, all of these characters, locations, and spells etc belong to JKR, and I'm making no profit here.

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><p>Hermione Granger was fast asleep, her head resting on her worn copy of <em>One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi<em>, quill still in hand. As a group of first years noisily made their way to the portrait hole, her head shot up. _Agh my neck, ouch._ Then, seeing the afternoon light spilling in through a crack in the curtains, Hermione checked her watch and gave out a loud yelp. She began haphazardly shoving books, quills, ink, and parchment into her school bag.

"Oh hell, overslept, late to potions, blasted essay finished though, damn damn double damn" she muttered while sprinting through the portrait hole. The halls were mostly clear, save a few stragglers rushing about, as late as she was. _As long as I don't run into Peeves, everything will be fine, just fine. _

Nearly sliding down the stairs that led to the dungeons, Hermione finally found herself in front of the doors to the potions classroom. The low rumblings of a lecture could be heard through the wood; perfect timing, as ever. She took a deep breath, crossed her fingers, attempted to push her hair down, straightened her robes, and opened the door. Looking down at the well-worn flagstones, she made her way quietly to her seat.

"Ah, Miss Granger, at last you grace us with your presence." Hermione froze, eyes fixed on her desk. She had forgotten that the new professor was beginning today.

_Oh. Well. That's just perfect. Of course. _She looked up, directly into the eyes of the new Potions Master, and froze.

"Miss Granger, do you have anything to say for yourself, or are we just too far beneath you to merit the use of your tongue." His voice was as sharp as it had ever been, the war had apparently not changed that.

Hermione blinked, the entire class was either looking directly at her, or staring far too intently at their potions books.

"My apologies sir, I seem to have overslept, I was up much too late studying, I had to finish the paper the previous professor left us, and other coursework, and I can't sleep well anyway, bad dreams, busy, very busy, schoolwork, things…" She was babbling. How comforting to know that when shocked and in a compromising position, she would begin to spout nonsense.

"Silence." Hermione shut her mouth. He had not raised his voice, but the coolness in his voice shut froze the words in her throat..

"Detention. Ten o'clock tonight. My office"

"Yes sir." He frowned slightly.

Turning away from her, he continued to write on the blackboard, unable to see the flush creeping up her neck. _Oh god, I was going to prepare myself for this, I had plans to clear my mind, meditate or something. Blast it all, I'm an idiot. Detention. I've already gotten a detention, I deserved it, but still, I'm supposed to be setting an example._

"Now, instructions are on the board, I expect one phial of a recognizable attempt at the Volubilis Potion from each of you by the end of class. No phial, and you will find yourself with a zero for the day." As the professor settled behind his desk, and opened a large green volume, Hermione began to assemble the ingredients she would need, trying not to look up from her work. For the next half hour, she focused intently on her bubbling cauldron, only rarely glancing up at the professor, who seemed far more absorbed in his work than Hermione was in hers. _He seems different enough now, but I can't be sure, I still feel a chill whenever he looks at me. I have got to be the bigger person, try and allow for forgiveness. Can I?_

At that precise moment, he looked up, and right into her eyes. Hermione froze, just as she had at the beginning of class. She couldn't look away, her mind was racing through memories like a flip book: thick black curls sliding over her face, the cold stone floor beneath her head, and the pain in her arm, growing dull before lashing out through her body once again. She finally squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath, letting her ribcage expand as far as it could, before exhaling. She imagined all of her memories floating out onto the air with her breath. Twice more and the pages of the book were no longer turning. She opened her eyes. He was still looking at her, with concern, or mild disdain, she couldn't tell. He didn't seem to have a very wide range of emotion, so it could have been either. Glancing at the board, she swore under her breath and returned to the bubbling orange potion in front of her. She had almost certainly let it stew for too long, it had surpassed tangerine orange and gone right for sunset. She snatched up a few mint sprigs and got to work.

The remainder of class went by quickly, no more glances or accidental eye contact. Once her potion had settled in to a pleasant yellow shade, Hermione bottled up a sample and cleared her table. She looked around, despite her having been late, she had finished before most of the class. She could sit and read at her table, but, no, she wanted to get out of the dungeons and have some time to think before detention.

"Sir."

"Please address me by my full academic title Miss Granger, I don't care for the casual tone you have taken on."

"My apologies, Professor Malfoy, I will endeavour to avoid such a casual tone in the future." He raised an eyebrow at her words; did he detect a hint of sarcasm? "I have finished the assignment" She placed the phial in front of him. "Am I required to remain here for the rest of the period?"

He was silent for a moment before answering, his face expressionless, and his eyes narrowed.

"I see no need for your continued presence. You may leave."

"Thank you Professor Malfoy." She turned to go.

"And Miss Granger"

"Yes Professor Malfoy?"

"A foot and a half on the merits of a clear mind, as induced by a Sharpness Solution, when going into battle, due next class. Additionally, lateness to tonight's detention will not be tolerated." His low voice had a sharp edge to it.

"Yes Professor Malfoy, sir, I won't be late." Hermione's hands shook slightly as she turned and tried to walk calmly from the classroom.

That bastard. Assigning her that paper. Had he known what was running through her head when she looked at him? Of course he had, he likely had spotted her fear a mile away and he was probably a very accomplished legilimens to boot. Lucius Malfoy. Lucius fucking Malfoy. She would have to prepare herself well for detention.

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><p>Well, there you have it, tune in next time for some (not so) surprisingly salacious scenes.<p>

Ah, and, in case anybody was wondering, the Volubilis potion appears in the HBP video game. In addition to altering the drinker's voice, it can reverse the effects of a silencing charm, namely, the silence bit.


	2. Chapter 2

Hello again! Sorry for the wait, I was planning to have this up last week, but, alas, shit happens. I considered going into how Lucius has changed, but, I hope that you all can adequately suspend any disbelief for now. Also, I'm not sure how I did with this 3rd person omniscient nonsense, drop me a line if it's unclear who is thinking etc.

Again, none of these characters are mine, all belong to the lovely JKR. I don't think she would quite approve of their post-book ah, adventures.

xxx LionLace

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><p>As dinner dragged on, the lively student chatter faded to a dull drone in Lucius Malfoy's ear. He sat at the end of the staff table, isolated despite Minerva's best efforts, and quietly finished his dinner. <em>Two more hours. <em>Standing up and pushing his chair back, he looked out over the sea of black hats, his eyes coming to rest on the Gryffindor table. _I should look away before she catches my eye. I really should._ He turned and strode out of the Great Hall, followed by a pair of brown eyes peeking over the top of a rather large book.

Lucius ran his hands through his hair as he walked towards his office, thinking. In fact, thinking hard enough that he ran right into a suit of armour.

"Oi, wotch it mate, I'm a valuable historical artifact, I am!"

"Oh yes, how foolish of me to collide with such a magnificent piece of history."

"That's right, foolish as can be."

The suit of armour straightened itself considerably, and, despite having no face, seemed to wear a rather proud expression.

"Enchanted nonsense." Lucius muttered as he opened the door to his office.

He sat down at his desk and leaned back, the chair squeaking slightly. He waited.

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><p>There was something about carrying a book-bag full to bursting with the contents of at least a third of the Hogwarts library. Hermione could have used her old purse, with the undetectable extension charm, but she felt oddly proud whenever she walked down the hall laden with books. She looked up from the utterly engrossing <em>An Extensive History of Mind Altering Potions from 1950 – 1970,<em> just in time to see Professor Malfoy striding away from the staff table. She turned her head to watch him leave, he seemed to be rather preoccupied by something. Returning to her book, she found herself unable to focus on the words, despite being in the midst of a chapter focusing the adulteration of potions with muggle drugs.

She was thinking about Lucius, _Professor Malfoy_, again. She didn't necessarily hate him, or, at least, she didn't think so. He seemed to have changed, or at least that's what the Daily Prophet would have her believe. Charitable donations, working with muggleborns, testimony against his former comrades, freeing house elves; all of it had been splashed across the front page at one time or another in the past year. Most of all, Hermione trusted the Headmistress. _McGonagall would not have let him teach here if she didn't believe he was a reformed man. And he was cordial enough, even when I was late._

Hermione flushed at the memory. It was not just the embarrassment of walking in to the class late, but feeling his eyes on her. His unflinching gaze had made her stomach flip, she was not one for prolonged eye contact, but, as he was reprimanding her, all she could think about was how clear and bright his eyes were. Her stomach did a little flip as she recalled the morning's events. She looked at her watch, _less than two hours, I've got less than two hours to quit blushing and make my damn stomach stop doing flips. I wonder what he'll have me doing, probably lines, or cleaning maybe. Exciting. _Hermione sighed quietly and packed her bag, she hoped that a good long stay in the library would calm her down.

The library was mostly empty when she arrived. _Perfect, the books outnumber the people, just what I needed. _After an hour, she decided it was no use.

_Alright, here are the facts: _

_Lucius Malfoy is my professor, there's no getting around that._

_Lucius Malfoy was a Death Eater who, well, witnessed some unpleasant things that I have no wish to begin thinking about again, I'm a forgiving person, and, well I would rather forget a lot of those things, and go off of what I see now. Yes, that sounds about right _

_Lucius Malfoy is, regrettably, rather attractive. Though I've never actually touched it, I'm certain that if I were to run my hands through his hair, I would be overcome by ecstasy and, promptly, drop dead._

_He's old enough to be my father. Well, pish posh, I'm mature, he doesn't look it, and I have no intention of marrying him. Well, I don't really know what my intentions are at this point._

_I haven't had sex, or anything close, in… too long._

"Oi, Hermione, what are you going all glassyy eyed over? Hellooo?" A petite redhead had just walked into the library and was speaking much too loudly.

"Oh god Ginny, shush, you'll get us thrown out!" Hermione whispered

"Is your book really that interesting? I was trying to get your attention for a good minute before I resorted to yelling."

"Oh, no, I was just planning, er, thinking, you know, essays" Hermione waved her hands vaguely as she spoke.

"Uh, huh. Alright then, sure." Ginny didn't even try to keep her skepticism at bay.

"I've got to go anyway, detention, soon, Lucius, Professor, you know, yeah, bye!" Hermione cursed silently as she sped off, Ginny would probably attack her after detention for an explanation.

_What am I doing? What am I thinking?_ She caught her reflection on a particularly well polished suit of armour in the hall, and stopped.

_I'm not nearly his type, not blonde enough for him to risk his job._

She sighed and walked on.

The door to his office was cracked open, a warm sliver of light spilling out across the stone floor of the hall. Hermione walked up slowly, pausing at the threshold. He had his back to her, and looked to be rummaging through a cabinet behind his desk. He bent over a little further, and Hermione could feel herself beginning to blush once more. _Oh for christ's sake, control yourself, it's not as if you've never seen a nice arse before. Not as if you've never seen a wizard without his outer robes, with the top button undone on his shirt, with… Oh hell_.

Lucius smirked to himself, the girl must have been standing there for at least a minute. He turned and kept his eyes on his desk as he reached for the buttons on his shirt, slowly undoing one. The barely audible sigh was all he needed. His eyes swiftly moved to the door and caught her gaze.

"Miss Granger, I do believe that you are required to be present _in _my office for this detention, not skulking about outside." He turned back around and Hermione's stomach gave yet another flip. She slowly pushed the door open and stepped inside.

"Close the door, if you will. Privacy is required tonight."

Hermione's eyes widened as she turned to shut the door. _Oh god what is he implying, is it what I think he's implying? He doesn't seem the type to be frivolous with words; he probably knows exactly what the connotation was there. Oh god I bet he's watching me now. Deep breath._

She turned back around and defiantly met his eyes, raising an eyebrow for good measure.

"Of course Professor, sir. What exactly will we be doing tonight?" She hoped he had missed the slight wavering of her voice. Lucius allowed a pause before speaking, how he enjoyed watching her squirm with each well-chosen word.

"You are likely unaware, but I, for the past few months, have been extensively researching Veritaserum. Specifically, whether or not it is possible to build up an immunity."

"Oh, really? I was just reading something about that, there had been concerns during interrogation, certain testimonies given under the potion's influence were contradictory, if I remember correctly." This time, Lucius raised his eyebrow.

"I daresay I am impressed Miss Granger." She blushed slightly, trying to banish thoughts of his mouth from her mind.

"Well, I do read, rather a lot." She stammered.

"Ah, yes, your bookish reputation precedes you. In fact, it makes you rather, perfect, for tonight's ah, research."

"Research? Tonight?" Hermione couldn't tell whether he intended for her to aid him in research, or if he needed someone to test his theories on.

"Yes, it has all been cleared with the Headmistress, she thought you would be more than able to… perform."

"What exactly is it that I will be doing? Taking notes? Looking things up?"

"Oh no, nothing quite so dull. I have developed an antidote that needs to be tested. You need not worry, I have taken some myself and suffered no ill effects."

Hermione's thoughts were racing. _Oh god what if I say something about him, what if the antidote doesn't work? Doesn't an antidote already exist? Why is he looking for another? Scientific curiosity I suppose. But, hell, I couldn't face him if I said anything about his long, lustrous, hair, and the way those pants fit him, and his chest, and… Focus. Ok, ask a question._

"I see. How will you be determining the efficacy of this antidote?" For a moment, she thought she saw a slight smile, but then it was gone.

"I will be asking you a series of questions, about various bits of information you have gleaned from books. You will attempt to falsify the information, and, as I have a written record of the truth, I shall be able to conclude something, either way." _Books, I can handle books, perfect._

"Is this acceptable to you?" He asked, eyebrow, once again, raised.

"Oh yes, it's rather exciting actually, being a part of new research. Which books shall we use, Professor?"

"Any from your exceedingly full bag will do."

She leaned over and pulled the copy of _An Extensive History of Mind Altering Potions from 1950 – 1970 _from her bag.

"I was just reading this earlier, for that essay you so kindly assigned me"

"Tone Miss Granger, be sure that you watch it, else I may find it necessary to further… punish you." She stilled, then crossed and re-crossed her legs. _He certainly knew how that sounded, he must have._ She looked up into his eyes, steadily, and said:

"Oh, forgive me, Professor, heavens knows I wouldn't want that." _Oh dear lord did I really just say that? I did. Yes. That was said. And, it was fun, he blushed a little, I think, it's hard to tell with his smooth, milky, complexion, those cheekbones, ahh. Right. Focus._

Lucius stood up, and smiled. She was just delectable. Sitting there and stewing, so responsive, so eager and youthful. He would have fun with this little witch tonight, that was certain.

"In that case, we shall begin." He turned and retrieved two small bottles from the cabinet to his left.

"Drink this." He handed her the smaller of the two. Keeping eye contact, she drained it in a matter of seconds, and licked her lips.

"Delightful, I'm rather surprised it tasted so good, it was deliciously salty." _Oh you've got this seduction thing down pat Hermione._

Lucius' breath hitched momentarily, and he handed her the second bottle. Neither of them looked away.

"Now for the questions." Hermione said as she set the empty bottle down.

"Yes, now for the questions." Lucius made a show of shuffling through the papers on his desk, then sat back with a sheet of paper in his hands. He glanced at it once, then up at Hermione, who was leaning just far enough forward to provide him a rather welcoming view, and placed it back on the desk.

"What is your name?" He asked, with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Hermione Jean Granger." She blushed. _Good lord, he's just asking your name, it's not as if he asked you whether you like to be on top. Control yourself._

"Miss Granger?" He leaned back in his chair and pressed his fingertips together.

"Yes?" She swallowed audibly. _Why is he taking so long with these questions?_

"Have you ever been fucked?"

_Oh God._

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><p>I really meant for the good stuff to happen here, but I'll update next week, promise!<p> 


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